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Variation of indoor radon concentration and ambient dose equivalent rate in different outdoor and indoor environments

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Abstract

Subject of this study is an investigation of the variations of indoor radon concentration and ambient dose equivalent rate in outdoor and indoor environments of 40 dwellings, 31 elementary schools and five kindergartens. The buildings are located in three municipalities of two, geologically different, areas of the Republic of Macedonia. Indoor radon concentrations were measured by nuclear track detectors, deployed in the most occupied room of the building, between June 2013 and May 2014. During the deploying campaign, indoor and outdoor ambient dose equivalent rates were measured simultaneously at the same location. It appeared that the measured values varied from 22 to 990 Bq/m3 for indoor radon concentrations, from 50 to 195 nSv/h for outdoor ambient dose equivalent rates, and from 38 to 184 nSv/h for indoor ambient dose equivalent rates. The geometric mean value of indoor to outdoor ambient dose equivalent rates was found to be 0.88, i.e. the outdoor ambient dose equivalent rates were on average higher than the indoor ambient dose equivalent rates. All measured can reasonably well be described by log-normal distributions. A detailed statistical analysis of factors which influence the measured quantities is reported.

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Acknowledgments

The authors highly appreciate the enthusiasm of Mr. Eric Hulbert, Ph.D. from Radosys Company, Budapest, Hungary, who supported this project by donating the RSKS detectors. The authors would also like to express their gratitude to the mayors, schools directors, and the owners of the dwellings in Sveti Nikole, Kratovo, and Probistip municipalities for collaboration during this survey. This survey was funded by the research fund of the Goce Delcev University, Stip, Republic of Macedonia. The Gamma 1 detectors were provided within the Project P-41028 of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development of the Republic of Serbia.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Medical Sciences, Goce Delcev University, Krste Misirkov No.10-A, P. O. 201, 2000, Stip, Republic of Macedonia

    Zdenka Stojanovska, Emilija Janevik & Vaso Taleski

  2. Faculty of Natural and Technical Sciences, Goce Delcev University, Krste Misirkov No.10-A, P. O. 201, 2000, Stip, Republic of Macedonia

    Blazo Boev

  3. Institute of Nuclear Sciences “Vinča”, University of Belgrade, P. O. Box 522, Belgrade, 11000, Serbia

    Zora S. Zunic

  4. National Center of Radiobiology and Radiation Protection, 3 Sv. Georgi Sofiyski st., 1606, Sofia, Bulgaria

    Kremena Ivanova & Martina Tsenova

  5. Faculty of Natural Sciences and Mathematic, Institute of Physics, University in Ss. Cyril and Methodius, Arhimedova 3, 1000, Skopje, Republic of Macedonia

    Mimoza Ristova

  6. Croatian Geological Survey, Sachsova 2, P. O. Box 268, Zagreb, Croatia

    Sorsa Ajka

  7. German Federal Office for Radiation Protection, div. SW 1.1, 120-130 Köpenicker Allee, 10318, Berlin, Germany

    Peter Bossew

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  1. Zdenka Stojanovska
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  2. Blazo Boev
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  3. Zora S. Zunic
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  4. Kremena Ivanova
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  6. Martina Tsenova
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  7. Sorsa Ajka
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  8. Emilija Janevik
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  9. Vaso Taleski
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  10. Peter Bossew
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Correspondence to Zdenka Stojanovska.

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Stojanovska, Z., Boev, B., Zunic, Z.S. et al. Variation of indoor radon concentration and ambient dose equivalent rate in different outdoor and indoor environments. Radiat Environ Biophys 55, 171–183 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00411-016-0640-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00411-016-0640-y

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